OffBeat
by Freida Right
Summary: A breif preview to another fic I'm writting, where Cecil and Rosa's two odd daughters tell about their troubles. Read it and you'll see what I mean... FFIV


Off-Beat

This story is a preview to another fic by me. It revolves around the twin princesses of Baron, Princess Angel, and Princess Sefi. Angel is desined to be Baron's next queen, but her heart is set on "more interesting" pursuits: becoming a paladin, like her daddy. Sefi, meanwhile, actually wants to be the queen, and she also wants to be a dark knight who uses a bow and arrows. This story is _their_ story. Told through the eyes of the Baron Royalty.

Disclaimer: I own Angel and Sefi, but no one and nothing else (although owning Cecil and Rosa might be kinda fun...)

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I don't know how, but both of my parents can make important deccisions under heavy pressure, and in a hurry. So can my twin; but I can't. Somehow, that gene hit my sister, but missed me. If one is to be a queen, that would seem a vital skill. Regardless, mother tries to pass on all that she knows of the trade to my distracted little light-brown head.

But I'm too off-beat to get it. It makes little or no sence to me. What does make sence to me is the sword. If I could just be a warrior, and leave the bigger responisbilities to my twin, I'd be happy. That's why I love my dad so much. If I've ever learned anything of real importance, it was from dad. Dad's the one who taught me swordplay. He's the one who taught me my first cure spell (despite the fact that mom's a white mage). And he's the one who gave the idea to become a paladin.

To be a paladin seems like it would be a lot more important than being a queen. A paladin goes about and helps people in need. A queen just sits around. I want to go out there. I want to do something...

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"Queen Sefi"... That has a nice sound to it, don't you think? But it's not gonna happen. Angel's the oldest, which means _she_ gets the crown. That's not fair! I actaully want it. But _noooo_. I've got to be content with what I've got; but I can't!

And then there's my odd desire to be a dark archer. I'd be the first of my kind, but I'd be setting a trend, right? That would be cool, right? And, I could be a queen at the same time too, right...?

You see? I'm off-beat. Sometimes I think I'm a little crazy. Mom and dad really think I'm crazy for wanting to be a dark archer; and not just because it's strange. They say that the dark any-knid-of-weapon can be manupulative to the soul, and that it wouldn't be a good idea. But they won't easily drill _that_ into my thick, dark purple skull (yes, purple. My hair is dark purple). It won't drag _me_ down. A dark blade won't hurt me. I could stand it. And, besides, if I'm not aloud to be queen, at least let me dream a little. Give me a break!

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Oh, our girls. Our two, "off-beat" daughters. One wants to be a paladin, and the other wants to be (of all things on the Blue Planet!) a drak archer. One just wants to run her sword through things and help people, and the other wants to juggle that with running a kingdom. Where did Rosa and I get _those_ two from? I never expected to get any children as... well... unique as Angel and Sefi.

It's not that we don't love them; we love them as much as we love each other (and that's a lot). But there's something not quite right about them. Something about their futures doesn't sit right in my heart. I feel that they're destined to do something _very_ important, but very, _very_ dangerous. I worry about that from time to time. Now that they're almost 14, they're capable of a lot more than they used to be.

Meanwhile, they have to realize a few things about the danger and responsibility span of their dreams. Angel says that she wants to be a paladin. How hard could it be, right? Wrong! Take it from one who knows: being a paladin is NOT as easy as it looks. I don't know if she realizes how many times I nearly _died_ in my adventures. And being a paladin is a big responisbility anyway. I know she's trying to avoid being the queen because she loathes being in charge of things. But think about it for a minute: a paladin is a protector. A literal angel (that's why we named her such, me _being_ a paladin). Being at the ready for in case someone needs help isn't easy, nor is it fun. Do you know how many people will even travel all the way to Baron just for me to heal them? It's isnane! I know that this might sound weird, but Angel wouldn't be able to handle being and angel.

Sefi thinks that she can be a queen and a dark archer at the same time. Queen, yes, I can see that quite easily. Dark archer: _NO_! Absolutely _NOT_! Rosa and I discussed this at great length before the twins were born, and we've drwan the line at any of our children being a dark _anything_. I won't let my beloved daughter get mixed up in all that mess. It's dangerous stuff, weilding a dark blade of any kind. It blackens the soul, and consumes you whole. It's scary, to put it simpley. Sefi's only 13 (okay, four weeks shy of 14, but still); if I could barely hold my head above dark water at 20, Sefi stands no chance. My answer is _NO_.

Angel only _thinks _that she can't rule Baron. If she really believes that she can do it, she'll excell. She looks at her mother and probably thinks that she's always been this good at being the queen. You should have seen Rosa when she was new at the job. She had no idea what to do with it. But once she'd been here for a while she figured out what to do. It's like learning to swim. At frist you don't really know what to do, but as you keep at it, you get better and better. Eventually you get so good that you can hardly believe that you started out not knowing what to do. Rosa did it, Angel can do it too.

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I'm ready to give up trying to teach Angel how to be a succesful queen. She just won't listen to me. I know, that from her point of view, I sound like I'm just lecturing her about it. But it's _really_ important.What would Baron do without a ruler? And, since we've had no sons (once with twins was quite enough for me, thank you), it's Angel's job to rule as queen. Don't yell at me: I didn't ask for this! Who'd want this, anyway? Tell me _one_ person you know who could handle this, and I'll laugh! Really! I will!

And Angel just doen't handle being in charge of things very well. If something happens, say if a lamp broke, and _she's _in charge, she'll panic. She doens't make quick choices well either. When King Edge of Eblan (but I'm sure you know about him already) paid us a visit, Angel knocked over a candle and set Edge's cape on fire. Edge handled it pretty gracefully. Angel could have done all number of things (and she later said that she knew it. She said that about six or seven ideas popped into her head at once), but she chose to stand there and cry. She was only four, bless her heart.

Sefi badgers us constantly about switching places with her sister. The answer is still no. For now anyway. I'm not sure how much more of her pestering Cecil can take (she can be so frustrating at times!). But she'd be much more fun to teach, at any rate. At least _she'd_ listen.

Well, there's really nothing much that I can do about it. I just hope that, as they keep growing up, they'll see the folly in their dreams, and stop chasing them. I doubt it will happen, but still. I'll just have to wait and see what happens; even if I don't like the out come.

That's all that any of us can do.

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I'm not quite sure about that ending. But that was still fun to write!

This is a sort of prologue for another fic I'm working on called "Final Fantasy Four-and-a-Half". It involves Angel and Sefi's little adventures, which they have with the princess of Damcyan (whom you'll read about in "Someone New to Love"), and Palom and Porom, who are now 20. Eventually, the twins achieve their dreams (their parents are pretty impressed with them in the end, actually). Then some more stuff happens, where the twins get to exicute their full power, and the story ends.

I'm working on "Final Fantasy Four-and-a-Half" right now. Check it!

End!


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